One Shots
by DrRaven
Summary: Some stories I began, but really have no motivation to finish.  If you'd like to go with the plotline/story, go for it, just let me know.
1. Chapter 1

Alternate 5th Year, Where Harry is learning who to trust, and who not to

Harry James Potter shook the coldness out of his body as he quietly crept up the stairs of Number 12, Grimmuld Place. After a long flight on brooms, to which Harry thought was the stupidest thing in the world, he was tired and impatient. Harry knew for a fact that Arabella Figg, who lived one street over, had a floo connected, and they could have gone through the floo network to this place. But no, they came up with some convoluted plan to get here. Why?

Over the past five weeks, Harry had a lot of time to think about things, especially since his friends weren't writing much. Everything they said was the same, _"Oh Harry, we can't tell you much… Dumbledore won't let us in case the owl goes astray…" _ It was the same story with Ron. But of course, that didn't stop Harry from getting the news. He in fact, did read the Daily Prophet, cover to cover, and knew that they were having a go at him in almost every issue. Harry, of course, didn't care. What he cared about was the fact that Voldemort's return was not Headline News. Instead, there wasn't a scrap of news about Voldemort at all. It wasn't surprising, seeing as Fudge wasn't in the habit of believing him.

The only people that seemed to believe him was Dumbledore, and surprisingly enough, the Goblin Nation. He had received an urgent owl from Gringotts, and learned much more than he knew before. It was something that Harry kept to himself, and would not share with many people. The fact that Harry was heir to Gryffindor, and emancipated. He had a plan for the trial in which he was scheduled to attend the next week, but he needed to be alone to plan it.

As Harry opened the door to the first room, which Mrs. Weasley had told him to go into, he was almost barreled over by a mane of bushy brown hair.

"HARRY!" Hermione squealed. Harry just grabbed Hermione by the arms and pushed her away, a look of hurt crossing her face. "Harry, what…. What's going on?"

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" Harry asked, his voice cold.

"Of course you know me, Harry James Potter!"

"I'm afraid I don't." Harry said, just as coldly.

"I'm your best friend!" Hermione snapped.

"No, I don't think so. _MY _best friend wouldn't withhold important information from me. _MY_ best friend would write more than the garbage that you have written over the past five weeks. _MY_ best friend wouldn't give a damn about listening to a geriatric idiot and found _another_ way of writing me. I'm sorry, Miss Granger, but you do not qualify as my best friend." Harry said coldly, looking at the tearing eyes of his one time friend. "And that goes for you, Mr. Weasley." Harry said. He turned and went back out the door, heading back downstairs. He was looking around and saw a portrait that was covered. Of course, being the curious person he was, Harry peeked inside the curtain.

"FILTH! MUDBLOODS!" Harry startled and stood back a step.

"Who do you think you are speaking to, woman?" Harry snapped. Immediately, running footsteps could be heard as people came out of the kitchen to stop the mad painting from yelling. "SHUT IT, WOMAN!" Harry was tired of the yelling. To everyone's surprise, the painting silenced. "Now, if you are going to speak, then you will do so in a manner befitting your stature."

"Who are you?" the painting asked in a civil voice, much more civil than any of the spectators have ever heard from her.

"I am Harry James Potter. You may call me Harry." Harry said, his hand coming over his heart, where no one could see it except for the painting. He whispered the word _Black._ The Black signet ring appeared on his hand, The painting, however saw it, and her eyes widened.

"Welcome to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black, sir." The woman said, more civilly than ever. "My home is your home for as long as you desire it. I am the former Lady Walburga Black, former matriarch of the Black Family."

"Ah. Lady Black, a pleasure. Do you mind if I ask why you felt the need to denigrate the occupants of this home?"

"They are filthy blood traitors, mudbloods, and half-breeds that don't deserve to live!" Lady Black snapped. "The Dark Lord…"

"Is nothing but a half blood himself, Lady Black. In fact, although I am a half blood myself, both of my parents have magic, unlike your Dark Lord. His father was a muggle by the name of Tom Riddle." Harry said. The paintings eyes widened. "Yes. Your son Regulus died at the hands of an inferior being. Those that are here have vowed to destroy that half blood pretender." Harry said.

"Harry…" A voice interrupted. Harry turned to see the only person he really wanted to see.

"SIRIUS!" Harry smiled widely as Sirius approached. He hugged him tight and stepped back. "I was just speaking with the Lady Black…"

"Yes. I see you've met my mother."

"Filthy ingrate…" the painting muttered.

"Now now, Lady Black, that isn't nice. Sirius may be a flea bitten mutt…" Harry smirked at the dog animagus, "but I'm sure he's taken at least one decent bath while he was here." Harry ducked the swat coming at him as Lady Walburga laughed. It was a strange laugh coming from an old painting.

"I like you Harry. I give you all that was mine. As my _son_ saw fit to end up in Azkaban…"

"He _is_ innocent, you know." Sirius interrupted. "And standing right here!"

"But you cannot inherit until you clear your name." Harry said. "And since Dumbass doesn't see fit to help you, then I think I'll have to take care of things the _marauder _way. Oh, and Sirius… is there a room that's available? Like, without any nosy dimwitted underage redheads, bookworms, or annoying old egotistical addled geriatric geezers?"

"You, Harry, may use my room. It is yours now, if you wish." Lady Black interrupted. "KREACHER! Show Harry to my room, and key him to the bedroom wards! Obey his orders as you would my own!"

"Yes Mistress." Kreacher said, popping in. The old elf turned to Harry. "Master Harry shall follow Kreacher. Kreacher will take care of Master Harry." Harry shrugged and followed the old elf, with Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, and Sirius hot behind his heels. Harry entered the room that Kreacher showed him, and was surprised when everyone but Sirius bounced off a ward line, causing a big pileup at the door. Not even Dumbledore, who followed them, could get in.

"Well, that's interesting." Harry mumbled. "Thank you, Kreacher. You are a great elf."

"Great elf?" Sirius said, looking at the elder elf. "Harry…" Harry held up a hand to silence Sirius.

"Master Harry is too kind to poor old Kreacher. Should Kreacher take care of the mudbloods and the filth?"

"No, Kreacher. You will not do anything harmful to the occupants of this house." Sirius said.

"Master Sirius speaks to Kreacher as if he is in charge. But oh no, Kreacher does not want to serve dirty Dog Man." Harry couldn't help but snicker.

"Kreacher, please return to cleaning the house. After all, you are the Black House Elf… do you really want this dreary and dirty house to represent the Black Family?"

"Kreacher will clean, Master Harry. But Kreacher is old. He is not as fast as he used to be. Perhaps Master knows of elves freed?"

"Freed elves, eh?" Harry smirked and looked directly at Hermione. "DOBBY! WINKY!" Two pops echoed through the room.

"Harry Potter has called Dobby! Dobby is so happy!" The excited elf said, bouncing up and down. Winky was swaying on the spot, drunk off butterbeer.

"Winky. How are you?"

"Harry Potter asks of Winky's health? Winky is not good, Harry Potter sir. Winky is dying. No Masters to serve means no magic. No magic means Winky is dying." Dobby said sadly.

"Winky, you need a family?" Harry asked the raggled elf. Winky looked up at him with wide eyes. "Then you may bond with me. You and Dobby both, if you wish."

"OH HARRY POTTER SIR IS THE GREATEST WIZARD ALIVE! TAKING IN DOBBY AND WINKY!" Dobby shouted with glee and hugging Harry around the knees, bouncing up and down. Harry watched as Hermione turned red with anger.

"BUT, Dobby and Winky, there are some rules you will need to follow. Both of you will be bound to the Potter family, and you will _only_ follow my orders. If anyone asks you to do anything, it is your choice whether or not to do so. You will _never_ tell anyone anything about me without my permission. You will not tell anyone where I am, what I am doing, who I am doing it with, or any information about me what so ever. You will _never_ punish yourself. Should you feel the need to be punished, you will come to me and tell me what you did that deserves punishment. If I decide you need punishment, then I will punish you. Are we good so far?"

"Yes Master." Both Winky and Dobby said.

"Secondly, you will not call me Master. That goes for you too, Kreacher. You will call me Harry, or Mister Potter. This is an order." Harry said. He looked at Sirius. "Dobby and Winky, you will obey Sirius, unless it contradicts orders of my own. Kreacher, you serve the whole family Black, so you must follow orders of anyone in this house that is a Black. If I'm not mistaken, that is Sirius and Tonks."

"Yes Ma… Mister Potter." Kreacher said.

"Third. This room has a huge closet, suitable for three elves to live comfortably. Hell, it's bigger than my bedroom at Privet Drive. You three will make yourselves a nice little home there, and sleep there instead of any kind of broom cupboard or whatever. You will each take a day off a week, but not the same day unless you specifically ask for it. You can ask me for anything you wish, and if it's within my power to grant, I will."

"Can we mate and have elflings?" Winky asked. The question came out of left field, and Harry was shocked. He looked at the little female elf.

"Winky…if you find yourself an elf that you wish to mate with and have little elflings, then you are more than welcome to. But please do so away from prying eyes. If you ever have elflings, then you are to come to me for a reduced work schedule so you can take care of yourself. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Harry Potter." Winky said and for the first time, she smiled. Harry looked at the three elves, and the gobsmacked look on Sirius' and the other's faces.

"DISMISSED!" Harry shouted, slamming the door in the faces of the Order. The elves smiled and disappeared as Harry turned to Sirius.

"What the bloody hell was that about?"

"Long story Padfoot. Can I trust you? Can I trust you not to blab to Dumbledore?"

"Harry… you come first and foremost in my life. I offered this house for the Order…"

"The Order?" Harry asked.

"Let's sit down and we'll talk." Sirius sat down next to Harry and began telling him all about the Order of the Phoenix. Harry told his own story, which thoroughly surprised Sirius.

"Harry James Potter! You are the new Lord Black?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah. Gringotts decided they believe me on the return of Voldemort, and found some odd things going on with my accounts. Yes, I said accounts. I only thought I had my vault, but it turns out there's a Potter Family Vault. Seems one interfering old coot decided that I didn't need to know about it. I also had my parent's wills read, and learned that I was to never go to the Dursleys. I have copies with me, dated October 29th, 1981. I think I'm going to have an interesting time at this trial coming up." Harry smirked. "The Son of Prongs is going to the Wizengamot. Neville heard from his Grandmother that they're going to try me in front of the full Wizengamot."

"But they don't handle cases of underage magic." Sirius said.

"No kidding. They're trying to railroad me, but I have my own plans in motion. I have a solicitor ready to record everything, International News Press at the ready, and some other things. It's going to be a closed trial, according to Madame Longbottom. But I've accounted for that…" Harry smirked.

**AUGUST 12, 1995, Courtroom 10.**

"Disciplinary Hearing of August the 12th, into the actions of one Harry James Potter, of Number 4, Privet Drive, Little Whinging Surrey. Interrigators, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic, Amelia Susan Bones, Director of Magical Law Enforcement, Delores Jane Umbridge, Undersecretary to the Minister…"

"Witness for the Defense, Albus… Percival… Wulfric… Brian… Dumbledore."

"I OBJECT!" Harry shouted. "I do not need some addled old geriatric fool to state my case."

"Mister Potter, are you stating that you do not wish to have Professor Dumbledore testify on your behalf?" Fudge asked incredulously.

"No, I do not need a manipulative, thieving, plotting, moronic geriatric goat buggering, lemon drop addicted, mind raping fool as my defense council." Harry said, much to the gasping of everyone present. "I may not know the law as well as Madame Bones, but I do know how to speak the truth, I do know what I'm going to say, and I do know that I don't need him. If he has no other business here in this court, I'd ask the Wizengamot to dismiss him."

"Professor Dumbledore, please take your family seat." Madame Bones sighed. She thought it to be a foolish mistake on the part of Harry Potter, but it was his mistake to make.

"Thank you Madame Bones. May I have a list of the charges?" Harry asked.

"Er, yes. Charge One: Willfully casting magic in front of a non-knowing muggle. Charge Two: Knowingly casting magic despite being underage, a violation of the Reasonable restriction for underage magic. Charge Three: Violation of the statue of Secrecy. How do you plead?"

"On Charge One, Not Guilty. My cousin may be a muggle, but he is well aware of magic, as I had previously live with him. Therefore, willfully casting magic in front of a muggle unaware of the magical world is wrong, as he is fully aware I am a wizard. Second charge, Knowingly casting magic despite being underage. To that, I can only say that had there not been dementors attacking myself and my cousin, I would not have cast anything. Charge Three…"

"Dementors?" Madame Bones said.

"Yes, yes. I thought we'd hear something like that." Fudge said pompously.

"Shut up already Fudge." Harry snapped. "Would you like veritiserum testimony, or a magical oath, Madame Bones?"

"Mr. Potter…" Bones began.

"Actually, Madame Bones, you may call me Harry. The rest of these inbred, child raping idiots, save for Madame Longbottom, may call me Lord Potter-Black, Head of the Most Ancient and Noble Houses of Potter and Black, or if you prefer, Duke Gryffindor." Harry said. Once it came out of his mouth, all three rings appeared on his hand.

"I see…" Madame Bones said. "Duke Gryffindor, how long have you held your titles?"

"Madame Bones, had the wills of my parents been followed correctly, and not sealed by then Chief-Warlock Dumbledore, I would have known about my titles from my rightful guardian as soon as I was able to understand. However, according to the Goblins, I have been Duke Gryffindor since October 31, 1981, the Lord Potter as of the same date, and Lord Black since my Godfather, Sirius Black's illegal incarceration."

"BLACK KILLED 13 MUGGLES AND PETTIGREW!" Fudge roared.

"Did he now?" Harry said, his eyes twinkling madly. "I, Lord Harry James Potter Black, Duke of Gryffindor, swear by my life, my magic, and my _soul_ that the words and evidence I give in this courtroom today is completely true and unaltered." A brilliant gold flash of light erupted around Harry, engulfing him and fading.

"Harry…"

"Silence, Dumbledore. That is Duke Gryffindor to you. Speak again, and I will have you censured and removed." Harry said sharply. "The night of October 28th, the secret keeper of Godric's Hallow was indeed Sirius Black. However, that next morning, they switched to Peter Pettigrew, as Sirius thought it would be a good way to keep the secret. No one would think that Pettigrew would be the secret keeper. The man who cast the fidelus charm is none other than Albus Dumbledore. He allowed Sirius Black to spend 12 years in Azkaban for the betrayal of the Potters and supposed murder of 13 muggles. However… there was no trial."

"Then Minister Bagnold, Barty Crouch Sr., and Dumbledore conspired to keep Black in Azkaban, denying me my rightful guardian. We all know what supposedly happened on Halloween, so I need not go into that. Dumbledore kidnapped me and placed me in the one place my parents will specifically stated not to send me. I have the original wills, certified by Gringotts, with me. Copies will be made available to all the press outlets that I trust, and I do NOT trust the Daily Prophet. On November 4th, 1981, Sirius Black confronted Pettigrew, and Pettigrew blamed Black for the betrayal, cut off his finger and blew up the street. He transformed into a rat, his animagus form…"

"LIAR!" a toadlike witch shouted.

"Are you truly an idiot? If I lied, then I'd be dead." Harry snapped. "Anyway, someone silence her before I call her out for denigration of the Houses of Potter and Black." The toadlike witch stood to her full height, which wasn't much more than she was sitting.

"Mister Potter…" the witch began.

"Lord Potter, Duke Gryffindor, My Lord… any of those three. Should you speak anything else but that, I will kill you." Harry said. Gasps were heard throughout the hall.

"Aurors…arrest him!" Umbridge said.

"I, Lord Harry James Potter-Black, Duke of Gryffindor, hereby _disband_ the Wizengamot, repeal all laws, and strip said Wizengamot of all rights and privledges of said positions, granted to them by his Majesty Richard the First in 1093, by my right and blood as Duke of Gryffindor. SO MOTE IT BE!" Harry said. A wave of magic ran rampant throughout the courtroom and out the doors.

"Lord Potter, what have you done?" Madame Bones raged.

"Took matters into my own hands, Madame Bones. You refused to silence her, when given the chance. I am not merely a schoolboy, Madame Bones. I _am _the Duke of Gryffindor, charged by her Majesty, by the grace of God Queen of England, Elizabeth the Second, to clean up the corruption and lies spread by this so-called ruling body. And if you haven't noticed, my oath is still in effect, and therefore I am speaking the truth. There is no longer a Ministry for Magic. In effect, _I_ am the ministry. Aurors, arrest Fudge, Umbrige, Lucius Malfoy, Agustus Rookwood, Crabbe, Goyle, Parkinson, Snape, and Dumbledore." Aurors were moving before anyone could say anything, compelled by the magic within the courtroom to comply. "You see, Madame Bones, they follow my orders because I am the rightful _magical monarch._ I bow only to the Queen of England, and all magical citizen must uphold any order I give. Should I give an order like… say… SHACKLEBOLT, Kill Lucius Malfoy." Immediately, Kingsley Shacklebolt raised his wand and began.

"AVADA…"

"HOLD!" Harry said. "The Aurors are under my control, as are anyone who works for this ministry, who took the oath. Magic will enforce my will, and Madame Bones, you are charged with the safety of Wizarding Britain. This means you will be in charge of ensuring that you have the funds and manpower to fight Voldemort, who has returned to England, and whatever resources you need you will have. I am declaring that any anti-muggleborn racism cease immediately. The word _mudblood_ is now taboo, and is punishable by immediate incarceration at Azkaban for no less than three months and a fine of 10,000 galleons in reparation to said person. Second offense will be dementors kiss. Any discrimination against any other magical race will be met with the same fate. Anyone not doing their jobs and enforcing this new policy will face similar punishments. All Ministry employees will be checked for imperious, and the Dark Mark. Any one found with the dark mark will be immediately sent through the veil of death. NO trial, no nothing. The Dark mark is now a death sentence, with the exception of Severus Snape."

"Why Snape? Didn't you just ask to have him arrested?" One former Wizengamot member asked.

"Yes." Harry smirked. "I did. However, he is partially responsible for the death of my parents, and I would love to get three drops into him, long after the unspeakables destroy his occlumency shields." Harry said and watching Dumbledore, shackled in irons, paling dramatically.

"What of those who took the mark unwillingly!" one of the Wizengamot members asked.

"Name one person…"

"Lucius Malfoy!" he immediately said.

"Can this be verified by veritiserum? Or was it the 15,000 galleon bribe that he paid to then Minister Fudge?" Harry smirked, pulling out parchments. "I have here _all_ the financial records of those claiming imperious during that time, and the correlation to then Minister Fudge. The Goblins, bless their greedy little hearts, love me to death." Many more people paled.


	2. Chapter 2

"You alright, Harry?" a soft voice asked. The soft crackling of the firelight and the notes plucked from the acoustic guitar in Harry's hands were the only other noises in the room. Harry looked up.

"I'm alright. Just thinking right now. There's just too much going on in my head, and occlumency isn't really helping. What if things go wrong? It could really screw things up."

"No more screwed up then they are now, Harry. The muggles have done more damage to the world than anything searching for Wizards and Witches. That's why our population has dwindled down to the low hundreds. I don't think you can screw things up worse than they already are."

"That's the thing, love. We don't know if it'll work, and if it doesn't, it's not just my life on the line, but the entire world's population. Voldemort's gone, yes. But not before the muggles learned of magic, and that in itself started World War III." Harry sighed as he plucked the guitar softly.

"It's not your fault, Harry. Dumbledore should have told you the information from the beginning. It's his fault that you didn't know of the Horcruxes earlier. It's his fault that you weren't trained from the beginning. It's his fault that he trusted Severus Snape and got himself killed."

"Oh. I never told you about that, did I?"

"Tell me about what?" the girl asked.

"Severus Snape was indeed a fighter for the light." The shocked gasp was all Harry needed to hear. "He may have been rotten to me and other Gryffindors, but he was firmly in the light. The night I fought Voldemort for the second to last time…"

_Flashback_

_ "Severus… why does the wand not work for me?" Voldemort asked, twirling the elder wand between his fingers. _

_ "My Lord, you have performed extraordinary magic with that wand." Snape said._

_ "No, Severus. I have performed my usual magic. I am extraordinary. This wand, however, is not what tales have led me to believe." Severus paled. He knew this was it. Harry, underneath his invisibility cloak, watched as determination entered into Severus Snape's eyes._

_ "True. You are extraordinary. However, there is one that is far more than you shall ever be, Tom." Severus said. Voldemort snapped around, looking at Snape. "I know you called me here to kill me, Tom. I have resigned myself to that fate. But it will not help you. You will not be the master of the Elder Wand even if you killed me."_

_ "You killed Dumbledore, the last holder of the wand. I will kill you." Voldemort said._

_ "Are you so much the fool, that you believe that? Dumbledore was defenseless on the Astronomy tower that evening. He had no wand. Dumbledore did not die by my hand, Tom. He died because of the poison on the Horcrux ring, destroying it. You will be mortal soon, Tom. And when that happens, Harry Potter will kill you. Of that, I have no doubt."_

_ "POTTER!" Voldemort raged. "POTTER is nothing! Nothing!" Voldemort raised his wand, and the snake, encased in a golden shield, floated over so that Snape's head was encased with the shield. "KILL" Voldemort said in Parsletongue. Immediately, Nagini bit into Snape's neck. The blood drained from Snape. "I regret this, Severus. You had served me well until you betrayed me." Voldemort and Nagini disappeared._

_ Harry threw off the cloak and ran to his former Potions' master. Kneeling over the body, Harry looked into the eyes of his once hated nemesis. Snape looked bewildered, but met the green eyes of the son of his love._

_ "Look at me." When Harry did, he felt the heavy legilimency probe. But it was different. A moment later, it stopped, and the pain from Harry's scar was reduced to nothing. Harry looked inquiringly at the fallen Potion's Master. "Use it, Harry. You are now as protected in the mind as I am. Survive. Win." Snape gasped._

_END FLASHBACK_

"What did Snape do?" she asked.

"He pretty much dumped his entire wealth of knowledge into my head, including almost unbreakable occlumency shields. I tweaked them since, but even now, I'm still going through all the knowledge he dumped into my head.

"Harry, that was over 30 years ago!"

"I know. I compartmentalized it before I faced Voldemort for the last time, and over the last 10 years, I've been sorting through it all. Snape may have been a greasy git to me, but his last gift to me allowed me to research what we needed to do."

"So this was why you needed my help. Snape gave you the clues, and his knowledge of potions, but you needed someone with runes and arithmancy."

"No love. That was not the only reasons. From my research, the universe is full of checks and balances. Good and Evil, Light and Dark, Ying and Yang. In order for this to have a chance at working, I needed balance."

"Are you saying I'm dark?" the girl bristled.

"Not at all, my dear. I'm neither light nor dark. I have murdered…"

"No, Harry. You didn't murder. You killed. Murder suggests that you did so intentionally, with malice. Killing is a part of war, Murder is not."

"Alright then, I killed many people. A light person does not kill, or torture. It could be said that I have tortured, not allowing people the luxury to die without pain… If anything I am grey."

"There are many shades of grey, Harry. But you still haven't told me…"

"As I was saying earlier, everything must balance. There are very few survivors from our days, love. In order for this to work, there must be balance."

"I understand that, Harry. Light/Dark, Good/Evil, Sun/Moon, etc. What does this have to do with me? And if you're grey, that means it should be balanced enough…"

"No love. There's one key thing missing." Harry said sadly.

"What's that?"

"What am I?" Harry asked.

"You're Harry Potter. The man who conquered. Sole survivor of the killing curse." She replied.

"Yes, but more basic than that." Harry prompted.

"I don't understand."

"Biologically… what am I?" it took a moment, but finally she realized it.

"You're male. In order for it to work, you need a female."

"Exactly. Which means, for this to work, I need a female companion. That means I will actually have to commit murder."

"No, Harry. I've read over the notes. Should this work, then we take our own lives. I've read over your notes, and now that I understand the balance thing, it seems to be the best thing to do. I know my sister would appreciate it if she ever knew, and those we lost…"

"But you would be dead to this…"

"Harry… think about it. If this works, then we'll have the chance to fix things properly. The best thing is, and I'm willing to wager that you didn't think about this, is that you don't have to do it alone. Two minds are better than one!"

"You're right. I didn't think of that. Hermione would…"

"Do NOT talk about her." She raged. "She betrayed you, along with all of those red-headed monstrosities."

"Not all of them. The Twins have always been on my side." Harry retorted.

"Harry… think about it. You spend one summer at the Burrow, after first year, right? How much time did you actually spend with the twins?"

"None, really. The only real time we spent together was during Quidditch Practice."

"Exactly. They give you the map in third year. Why? That kind of tool would be helpful to them in their pranks. Why give it up?"

"They thought I needed it more than anyone… to get to Hogsmeade, whatever." Harry said.

"Harry… think. I wouldn't give up that kind of valuable object for anything. Just like your invisibility cloak, which you happen to get in first year for the stone. I think your whole Hogwarts career was a setup. Didn't you tell me that you found Pettigrew on the map? And Barty Crouch Jr.? Think Harry… you get the tools necessary to solve each puzzle each year at a certain point in time. Granger suddenly realizes a basilisk is the monster of Slytherin? I'm sorry, but a 13 year old witch could not find that information first, when you had knowledgeable people like Snape, who was familiar with dark creatures, Kettleburn, the care of magical creatures teacher at the time, Dumbledore, supposedly the smartest wizard, and a plethora of other teachers. No. You were set up from the beginning."

"I figured that out before, love. I knew Dumbledore was manipulative. But the twins?"

"They gave you the map because they were told to. At least that's my theory. Why else would anyone give up such a valuable tool?"

"But they were a great help during the war." Harry said. "They came up with some good things."

"Did they really? Their products, while some ingenious, all came out before Snape died. The level of products ingenuity dropped after his death. It's only my theory, but I think Snape passed them information, or maybe Dumbledore, on getting things like that."

"You know, what you say makes sense." Harry said finally. "If this succeeds, we'll have a decent advantage. I know the they supposedly got the map in their first year. If this works, then the first thing I'll do is ensure that that particular map is destroyed. My father left me the instructions on how to make a new one, and since I know more secrets of Hogwarts than anyone…"

"Except the current Headmaster. He's tied to the wards, so he knows every location in the castle."

"Not every location." Harry smirked. "The wards aren't tied into the Chamber of Secrets. Nor was it tied into the Room of Requirement until after my fifth year. One thing I've learned about the room, is that the main door, while on the seventh floor, can be magically moved with a spell. I can also blood ward it."

"Blood ward? Why would you do that?"

"Simple. That room can become anything you need. It can create a passage way to _anywhere_. Remember 7th year? It created a new passage to the Hogs Head. It also opened exits to anywhere in Hogwarts. Neville learned that, but what he didn't learn was that it can literally go anywhere."

"Then we use it as a base of operations?"

"Yes. If we succeed, then the Room will be our way of getting around, so long as one person is in the room at all times, we can keep the passage open. The Chamber of Secrets can only be opened by a parslemouth, so that is out."

"Right. But couldn't you rearrange that?"

"I could, but then I'd actually have to kill a 60 foot basilisk again, and I don't think Salazar would like it if I killed Blinky."

"Blinky?" she asked. Harry shrugged.


	3. Chapter 3

No, Thank You.

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot looked that the parchment stunned. His deputy headmistress and other heads of house passed the parchment around, each reading the bright red letters spelling out "NO THANK YOU." On it. Only one professor had a smile on his face, or he would if his face was not schooled to look impassive.

"What does he mean, No thank you?" Pamona Sprout, a dumpy witch with a patched dirty hat asked.

"Why are we here discussing this?" Sneered the dark haired professor. "It's obvious the brat doesn't want to attend. He sent his reply, and we are done with it. Why are we here?"

"Potter can't refuse to attend Hogwarts!" McGonagall said.

"He can." The Sorting Hat stated. "He cannot be sorted if he has refused entry. By returning his acceptance letter with a negative response, he has sealed the magic."

"Surely there are exceptions!" Dumbledore said.

"There are. Before September 1st, Mr. Potter must place me on his head and acknowledge that he wishes to attend Hogwarts. There will be no coercion, no imperious, no chance of anyone tampering where I cannot find out. " The sorting hat smirked. He knew of Dumbledore's plans, but could not do anything about it, as he was Headmaster. Mr. Potter probably saved himself years of torture by refusing to attend. The magic of Hogwarts will now protect him, albeit indirectly.

**Daily Prophet**

**August 10****th****, 1991**

_**DISAPPEARANCE OF TWO HOGWARTS PROFESSORS STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION!**_

_**By Ima Payne**_

_**It has come to this reporter's attention that two distinguished professors have disappeared. Hogwarts Potions' Master and Head of Slytherin House, Severus Snape (31) and Professor Quirinus Quirell (Former Muggle Studies, now Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor) have mysteriously disappeared. This has happened over a period of four days. Hogwarts Headmaster had no comment, but an insider stated that this was the normal time for teachers to make rounds on muggleborn and muggle raised students. **_

_**This is an odd time for this to happen, as this is the year that our nation's savior, Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, should be attending Hogwarts. This reporter's insider source states that Hogwarts has received all student replies, but could not comment on whether or not students accepted. We at the **__**Daily Prophet**__** urge the Ministry to investigate further into the disappearance of the two professors.**_

Dumbledore sighed. He had sent Snape to talk with the boy to convince him to come to Hogwarts. When Severus didn't return, he sent Quirinus. The boy MUST attend Hogwarts! He had no choice but to send his probable head of house. Yes. No harm would come to her. After all, she is the boy's godmother. Family magics would prevent Harry from physically harming her.

NUMBER 4, PRIVET DRIVE, Little Whinging, Surrey

"Yes? YOU!" Petunia shrieked. Harry looked up from the newspaper he was reading and slowly put it down.

"I'll handle this, Petunia. Apparently these people can't take the hint." Harry said. Harry turned towards the person in the door. "Can I help you, Madame?"

"Mister Potter. I understand that you have refused entrance into Hogwarts…"

"Whoa, we have a speaker of the obvious here." Harry rolled his eyes. "I take it, Madame…"

"Professor McGonagall." She replied sternly.

"Yes, yes. Whatever. I take it Madame, you didn't get my last three responses?"

"We have received one response, Mr. Potter." McGonagall said.

"Oh? And don't you think that the disappearance of two of your professors doesn't send a message?" Harry said coldly. "Something like, leave me the fuck alone already?"

"You… you had something to do with the disappearance of Severus and Quirinus?"

"Oh? Is that their names? Eh. Petunia said she knew the greasy haired batman. Sadly, that didn't help him when I banished him to Antarctica without clothing." Harry said more to himself than anyone. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw McGonagall pale. "And that turban headed freak with two faces… well, I suppose technically he was already dead…"

"Mister Potter!" McGonagall screeched.

"You're still here? Well damn. I can't very well kill my Godmother. But then again… I could wipe her memories and shove her in an old age home." Harry muttered. Petunia, who was standing nearby, snickered. Harry rounded on her. "What?"

"The old fool Dumbledore would come. If anyone deserves that, it's that interfering old bastard." Petunia said.

"True. He sent my godmother in hopes that I wouldn't kill her too. Sadly, it was a smart move on the old goat fucking bastards' part. Familia Magica won't allow me to directly or indirectly harm her." Harry sighed. With every word McGonagall paled further. "The DMLE already knows about Quirrell. I wonder if they ever found Snape…"

"Harry… you sent him naked to the middle of a frozen continent!" Petunia said.

"Yes. Your point?"

"He's probably an icicle." Petunia said.

"Most likely. He would have frozen to death by now. I mean really… naked with no wand…"

"No…no wand?" Harry held up two wands. One she knew belonged to Snape, the other, she assumed belonged to Quirrell.

"What do you want, Professor McGonagall. I've already stated that I will not attend Hogwarts. Did that old crackpot fool send you here to convince me?"

"Albus Dumbledore is not…"

"Sane? Smart? Wise? Honest?" Harry said. "Petunia, while I can't harm the professor here…"

"I can." Petunia said, a gleam in her eyes.

"Yep. Now…McGonagall, you tell that lemon drop eating, goat buggering senile old fool that if he wishes for me to attend Hogwarts, he would have to be dead, so I could piss on his grave." Harry said. "Now, anything else?"

"What did the Headmaster ever do to you?" McGonagall asked. "For that matter, Snape and Quirrell?"

"You know very well what he did Minerva Marie McGonagall." Harry snapped. "You… you can't mean here! They are the worst sort of muggles imaginable!" Harry mimicked her voice perfectly, while McGonagall paled. "I remember everything I am exposed to, Madame. The DMLE will be bringing Dumbledore and yourself up on charges, eventually. Snape is not any concern of mine, as he thought he could come here and order me around. Vernon Dursley learned early on that he couldn't do that shit. Not only has Dumbledore violated my parents wills, lied about who my parents secret keeper was, _tried_ to steal funds from my trust vault, confiscated things not belonging to him, but he also left a fifteen month old infant in the middle of the night on a doorstep. Aunt Amelia calls that Criminal Negligence. If you weren't my Godmother, I'd kill you too." Harry said.

"And he would too. He's already killed that two-headed professor, and sent Severus to the arctic circle." Petunia chimed in. "Harry is responsible for my health and sanity, as he 'took care' of Vernon years ago. Do you really want to set him loose on Hogwarts population…" Harry got a gleam in his eyes.

"You know what…" Harry had one of those '_oh yes, it's on now'_ look in his eyes. "I think I will attend Hogwarts." This brought both Petunia and McGonagall up short.

"You… you will?" Minerva asked.

"Yes. See you on the first." And with a wave of his hand, McGonagall found herself back at Hogwarts, in her office.


	4. Chapter 4

"So you're telling me there is nothing you can do about the money Dumbledore and the three Weasleys stole from me?" Harry asked the Goblin behind the desk.

"That is correct, Lord Potter." The Goblin said. "Technically, Dumbledore was your magical guardian."

"Even though you have proof that he illegally obtained guardianship?" Harry asked incredulously.

"That is correct." The Goblin said. Harry couldn't tell for sure, but he was sure that the Goblin was smirking.

"Alright, Griphook. I have a bit of shopping to do, but I'll return tomorrow. There are some things in my vault that I want to get. I just don't have time today." Harry sighed, a plan forming in his head.

"We shall see you tomorrow then, Lord Potter." Griphook said, dismissing the young Lord. Harry left the office upset, but plans already forming in his head. He had only taken up the mantle of Lord Potter and Lord Black, as willed to him in Sirius' will. He stepped out of Gringotts and apparated out to the Wizarding District in France.

"How did it go?" the soft voice of Fleur Delacour asked. Harry turned to see the French beauty and sighed.

"They claim they can't help me." Harry replied.

"That's not true! They know it was attempted line theft, and gross misuse of funds! What are they playing at?"

"I don't know. But I really don't care. I have a plan that will probably not work, but at least will get me everything that I own within Gringotts."

"What do you plan on doing?"

"From what Remus and Sirius told me, Dumbledore couldn't get anything out of my Family Vault. My trust vault refilled each year to two thousand galleons. So at maximum, Dumbledore and the Weasley bitches stole about 30 thousand galleons."

"William wasn't a part of it." Fleur said. She was the one that had told Harry that Molly Weasley had a copy of the trust vault key, given to her by Dumbledore. That trust vault was now folded back into the Potter Family vault now that Harry was of age.

"How do you know?"

"I doused the shit with veritiserum. He seemed surprised that I was asking about his mothers deeds, but denied all knowledge of it. I couldn't resist, so I asked him other questions. The bastard had been cheating on me because I wouldn't sleep with him."

"I'm sorry Fleur." Harry said, giving the slightly taller blonde a hug. Fleur allowed herself to be held by the one man outside her family who loved her unconditionally. Harry could tell she was crying, but didn't say anything. When she pulled away, she kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you Harry. You're a true friend." Fleur smiled. "Gabrielle will be home soon. Come to dinner tonight?"

"Of course. I have to do a bit of shopping here in France, so I'll be back around seven."

"What are you going to get?"

"I need a new trunk for one." Harry smirked.

"Lord Potter. Welcome back." Griphook sneered.

"Thank you. Griphook, per the Goblin treaty of 1548, I'm requesting a blood test to see exactly what I am to inherit, and activate any vaults I may have." Harry replied. The goblin's eyes widened in surprise. This test was expensive, but per the treaty, any wizard of age that requested it had the right to do so at Goblin's cost. It did cost 300 galleons, after all.

"Lord Potter, I'm sure…"

"No, I need it done. After all, I want to see if I could at least get back some of the money that those people stole from me. Even if it's just a property or a couple of thousand galleons, it would assist, because I doubt I'll be able to find a job I like that is peaceful and not encumbered by this pesky fame I have."

"Very well, Lord Potter." After thirty minutes of signing forms using a blood quill, it was determined that Harry Potter was heir to three more major, well known families in the Wizarding World. He immediately took the Lordships of the houses and asked to go to the vaults. The goblin grumbled and called for a cart-driver.

"You don't need to remain. I will call you when I am ready. I think I'll be in here a while." Harry said when he reached the first vault. This goblin smiled gratefully and nodded, and took off in the cart. After all, it was his vault, and Harry Potter would not take what was not his.

An hour later the goblin was back after being called. "Next vault please." This process repeated for each vault he visited, a total of five in all. With the 10 compartment trunks he had in his pocket, the contents of the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Peverell, Black and Potter vaults were now on his person. This was unknown to the goblins at this point of time.

Harry had just entered the lobby when he ran what looked like trouble. Molly Weasley was there, attempting to get into the Potter trust vault.

"I'm sorry, Madame, but there is no Potter trust vault any longer. It was folded back into the Potter Family vault on the 31st." The goblin at the counter said. Molly Weasley didn't notice Harry approaching her, but the Goblin sure did.

"Harry needs his school supplies!"

"I'm sure Mr. Potter could come in here and retrieve gold for his own school supplies, Madame."

"He's just a boy…"

"A boy who had just caught you trying to steal from me, Molly Weasley." A voice interrupted. Molly paled.

"Ha-Harry…"

"Save your excuses thief. You know very well I already obtained my school supplies. Your idiot of a son was there with me. I think I'll have a talk with the DMLE for attempting to steal from me. Since the Goblins won't do anything…"

"Sir, we told you that there is nothing we can do." The goblin said.

"Oh, I heard that. So that's why as of this moment, I am closing _all _of my vaults and withdrawing all my money."

"I'm afraid you can't do that." The goblin at the counter sneered.

"We'll see." Harry smirked and left, leaving a sputtering Molly Weasley behind. Harry apparated to the Ministry of Magic.

"Director. We have been robbed!" Griphook shouted. The goblin behind the desk looked up in alarm.

"Which vaults?"

"Potter, Black, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Peverell!" Griphook said. The director tapped a few runes on his desk.

"No… we have not. It shows here that the owner of those accounts withdrew everything. Do you know why this is?"

"No sire." Griphook said, truthfully. He didn't know why The Potter boy withdrew everything. He had an idea, but it wasn't hard facts. "He did state to teller Longarm that he wished to close his accounts." The director looked up sharply. Before he could speak, another knock on the door. "ENTER!"

"Director. The Daily Prophet has an article I think you would be interested in." the goblin said fearfully. The underling handed the Daily Prophet to the director and scurried out.

**Man-Who-Won files charges of theft against three Weasleys!**

**Gringotts refuses to aid in recovery of stolen funds!**

_In a shocking press release from the Ministry today, it was learned that Harry Potter, 17, has filed charges of grand theft against Molly Weasley,(48) Ronald Weasley, (17) and Ginerva Weasley (16). According to the DMLE Head Kingsley Shacklebolt, Potter brought in proof of the removal of over 30,000 galleons from his trust vault. But this wasn't what surprised the Ministry nor this paper. Potter revealed to DMLE Head Shacklebolt that he removed all his funds from Gringotts, stating that if the Goblins, who Potter revealed in a sworn statement, 'could not assist him in recovering known stolen funds', then he will not bank with them. Potter also revealed that his vaults included the Black and Gryffindor Vaults, which he is known as the only heir left, and a surprisingly the Ravenclaw and Peverell vaults. Potter was unavailable for comment about this, but the question must be asked, "What happened with the Goblins that forced Lord Potter-Black to remove all of his assets from Gringotts?"_

"Griphook. You were the Potter Account Manager. You will explain, or you will be fed to the dragons!" the Director roared.

"Sir…"

"NO EXCUSES!"

"Sir, Lord Potter had discovered that his magical guardian, Albus Dumbledore, had taken funds for his upkeep…"

"Dumbledore was not the Potter Heir's Magical Guardian. That was Lord Black."

"Sir, he had paperwork from the Ministry!"

"But no proof of Black's guilt or a trial." The Director said. Before the director could say more, a couple of goblins burst into the room.

"Sire… wizards and witches are lining up to close their accounts!"

"What!" The director roared.

"Yes sir! They read the article this morning, and the families of students that Lord Potter went to school with are closing all of their accounts!"

"GRIPHOOK! Get me a meeting with Lord Potter-Black IMMEDIATELY!"

That meeting took almost three months to come to pass. Harry Potter refused to meet with anyone from the Goblin Nation, and it hit the Nation hard. Almost every light side family that was part of the DA had removed all their funds. Harry had been shocked to see that the Greengrasses, the Davis family, and many of the other neutral families also removed their assests. Only the major Dark families still had their money in Gringotts, and that was because most were in Azkaban. Therefore, their vaults were locked down and no money was going in or out.

The shakeup in Gringotts, London was more severe though. Through investigation by the staff of the King of the Goblin Nation, it was learned that an account manager, Griphook, was solely responsible for what the nation was going through, by _denying_ the Potter heir his right to retribution. The fact that said goblin took bribes to deny him that right long ago did not matter to the nation. The fact that the funds could not be recovered from Dumbledore due to his death did not matter. The fact that the funds from the Weasley matriarch could not be recovered due to the fact they were so poor did not matter. What mattered to the King of the Goblin Nation was that the Potter Heir was denied _retribution._ For a warrior race like the Goblin Nation, that was an insult to the most extreme. Griphook's head adorned the first pike. The rest of the pikes in front of the Goblin Nation belonged to the rest of Griphook's family.

Upon arriving at a secluded spot warded far beyond what the Goblin Nation was capable of, Ragnok, King of The Goblin Nation stood alone as he entered the warded area. This was part of the agreement to meet the Lord Potter-Black. His advisors had warned against it, but Ragnok was adamant. He would face the Potter Heir alone. Ragnok was shocked to discover a meal fit for a king when he entered the facility. There were goblin dishes on the table where he would sit. The Potter Heir was also there, along with Fleur Delacour, one of Gringott's employees. To the Potter Heir's other side was a willowy blonde that resembled the oddball Lovegood man, who himself was a fan of his writing. Goblin Pies indeed.

"You came alone?" The Potter Heir spoke.

"I thought it would be beneficial for us to meet, but I did not wish to have my whole contingent with me, as you might perceive it to be a threat." Ragnok said.

"Call two advisors. I will not have you out numbered. While this place will not allow violence in any way, I fear that your safety would be in jeopardy." Ragnok bristled. "Not from me, but from wards in this room. They will only allow you to speak truths. Lies will cause death." Ragnok's eyes widened. He had heard that the Potter Family were capable of such wards. In fact, it had been his life-long ambition to get a Potter to work for Gringotts to learn the secret of such wards.

"You would permit two advisors?" Ragnok asked.

"I expected you to turn up with your whole entourage. Two advisors a piece, and we can negotiate whether or not your nation deserves a second chance." Harry said. Again, Ragnok bristled. But he turned and whispered something into what looked like a mirror. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Potter Heir smile. A few moments later two more goblins entered, their eyes widened at the veritable feast in front of them. Harry gestured to the seats across from him and the King and his two advisors sat down.

"You know Fleur Delacour, your former employee. This is Luna Lovegood. Both are my advisors for this evening." Ragnok bristled yet again at the _former_ employee. The Delacour woman got out of her contract with the Nation because of a clause in all employee contracts. _When the Nation could not service the Customer to the Customer's Satisifaction_, or something like that. It had been a long time since he himself was part of a contract binding.

"This is Longtooth, and, should you choose to come back to Gringotts, your new account manager Ripfang." The Potter heir raised his eyebrow. "The traitor Griphook and his family were executed for their… lack of help."

"I see." Harry said.

"I have personally investigated everything, Lord Potter. Griphook took bribes from Albus Dumbledore. This constitutes a breech in our honor. He was put to death not because he accepted bribes and stole from you…"

"We will discuss that." Harry said. "I believe we are here because you personally asked for a meeting. My other advisors were against this, mainly because they're pureblood idiots." Harry said.

"Yes… well how could I not meet with you, Lord Potter? You are singularly responsible for the ruination of Gringotts London." Ragnok said. It was brief, but he saw the anger light within the eyes of the Potter Heir. "Do not mistake this as an accusation, Lord Potter. In fact, it is a compliment."

"Please explain to him, High King Ragnok. The Potter Lord has not the upbringing of the Magical Society."

"Yes, I know this and I apologize for my brief lack of remembering. You see, Lord Potter, the Goblins value _retribution_ above most other things because of our Honor code. If a goblin devalues another goblin's honor, then the first goblin is expected to gain retribution, either through combat or through intelligence. The second goblin would and should expect it, as it is an integral part of our society."

"An eye for an eye?" Harry asked.

"You could see it as that, yes. However, this ties into Griphook. While he was correct and that nothing could be done to recover the funds stolen…" Again, Ragnok noticed the glint of anger, "he did not explain why. Dumbledore died as a pauper. He did not have the funds nor does Molly Weasley. The funds stolen were spent by the children and woman. As you know, the Weasleys are one of the poorest families." Harry nodded. "But what Griphook failed to do was allow you your right to _retribution._ As your account manager, he should have suggested you take what was most valuable to the Weasley clan."

"I don't need the Burrow." Harry replied.

"You misunderstand, Lord Potter. The most valuable possession to the Weasleys is not their land or home. It is their daughter." Both Luna's and Fleur's eyes widened. It was an aspect of Pureblood culture that was not explained to Harry. It was obvious that Harry was about to explode before Fleur put a hand on his arm.

"Harry, he is correct. In Pureblood society, a daughter of a pureblood is much more valuable than a building. They are capable of producing heirs. With Ginerva having Weasley genes…"

"And the fact they multiply like rabbits," Luna interjected.

"She would be valuable to many of the pureblood families who wish to remain pure." Fleur finished. "The daughter of a pureblood house is an asset, sadly."

"And Luna?" Harry asked. "She is a daughter of a pureblood house."

"My 'pureblood' value is less than Ginerva's. While the Lovegood family is pure for generations, it does not compare to the Weasleys. The Lovegoods were known to have one or two children per generation, almost always magical. The Weasleys have a proven fertility." Luna explained. "That would increase her value more and more per generation."

"The fact that the Weasleys have seven children…"

"And every previous generation has at least four, but no daughter." Luna continued.

"Means that she is more valuable as a breeding whore than a wife." Harry said.

"Crudely put, but correct." Fleur said. Harry turned towards the Goblins.

"So Griphook failed to mention that. And it cost him his life and the lives of his family?"

"Yes. But reasoning it out, it was because we would not be here now had he just followed Goblin tradition and law. You took your own _retribution._ For that, I respect you as a Goblin." Ragnok said, and the other two goblins nodded.

"All I did was remove my funds." Harry said. It was a lie, really, but a lie filled with truth, so the wards did not affect him. It was, in fact the truth. All he had done was remove his own money. The fact that it caused every light side family to do so was part of the plan, but only because that's all he really did.

"True. But you must have mentioned removing your funds to someone." Ragnok said and Harry nodded. "That person must have relayed that, and caused every light side family to remove their funds when the story broke. You have a very high political power, Lord Potter. Your defeat of the Usurper not withstanding. The Potter family has always been for change within the Wizarding World. They have always showed that they respect magic and all sentient species. They also have the respect of most of the Wizarding Community. When you pulled your funds out, others followed your lead. It was a _masterful_ bit of retribution."

"It was, wasn't it?" Harry smirked. Ragnok's eyes widened.

"You planned it that way, didn't you?"

"Yes. When the public learned I had removed my funds, they would question why. If I didn't answer them, they would question what the goblins have done to lose my trust. And if the Potter family lost trust in the Goblin nation… then…"

"No one would trust us." Ragnok said.

"Exactly. Now… what can I do for you gentlemen?" Harry asked.

"We've come to ask that you return to Gringotts for your banking needs. We have…"

"Pardon me, but do not goblins hold to the faith that a thief is born, not taught?" Fleur asked.

"If you mean that we view all members of a family as potential thieves, then yes. It was why William Weasley, although no fault of his own, was let go."

"So to point out that theory, since Griphook was a thief… would that not, in your opinion make all goblins thieves?"

"Astute, but incorrect. Griphook and his family were put to death. All wizards are not related, just like all goblins are not related to one another." Ragnok said.

"If you go back far enough, every goblin, just like every human, is related." Harry said. "At least, if you believe in the evolutional theory muggles came up with." Harry looked at the goblins. "I simply can't trust that in the future, something like this won't happen again."

"It won't. The traitorous family is dead."

"But not all who were responsible." Fleur said. "Your director at Gringotts, London, for example."

"But…"

"Was he not in charge of the branch?" Harry asked, and Ragnok nodded. "Does he not oversee everything?" Again, he nodded. "Therefore, he is partly responsible."

"Lord Potter. If you return to us, we will return all funds stolen plus interest of 100 percent per year for ten years." Ragnok stated, shocking his advisers.

"Cumulative, or total?"

"Cumulative." Ragnok said, further shocking his advisors.

"That would be over 30 million galleons!" Longtooth shouted.

"Yes, it is. It will be punishment. The monies will come from the plunder of the Griphook family, plus the directors personal finances, and my own." Ragnok stated. "I can do no less as it is my honor on the line as well as the Goblin Nation's. Lady Delacour was correct. She was not questioning the honor of Griphook, but that of the entire nation. If Griphook could do so, what is to say that other goblins could not? I see is as trying to restore our honor and as reparations."

"And you are willing to put this into contract?" Luna asked.

"I am." Ragnok stated.

"Ten percent is to go to Luna Lovegood, and Fleur Delacour each." Harry said. The two were about to protest but Harry cut them off. "The rest will go into my vault to which only I will have access to. No one else, not even Goblins."

"That is…acceptable. How would we deposit your business interests?"

"You will open a second vault, like my trust vault except in reverse. All monies deposited will automatically transfer to the family vault. I will not be returning the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw vaults back under your control, but I will return the Potter and Black fortunes to the Potter Vault."

"But the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor vaults are the oldest…"

"But had no money whatsoever." This shocked the two goblins, but not Ragnok.

"True. I take it you value the knowledge the vault contained?" Ragnok asked and Harry nodded. "Very well. It will be done."

"You may release a statement to the press stating that I have returned to Gringotts. You will _not_ divulge what you did to get me to come back. However, you can state quite truthfully, that I have nearly quadrupled my net worth while the gold was out of your hands."

"But that would cause the Wizarding World to lose faith in investments with us!" Ripfang said.

"Either that, or they'll ask me how I did so. I won't tell them of course, so they'd still come to you to see if you can do better than me. You can't, of course, but you'd still make them money."

"Because they won't know we paid you to come back." Ragnok stated.

"Exactly. Think of it as punishment of my own. While you'd probably lose some business, it would not be as bad as it is currently."

"Agreed." Ragnok sighed. It was a tough negotiation, and he knew he was beat. He had no choice.

The Goblin nation eventually recovered from the loss of so much gold over those three months. True to his word, Harry returned the Black and Potter gold to his vaults. What went unknown to the Goblins was that Harry had four times the amount in muggle money due to all the gold he did have to begin with. Harry had no intention of touching any of the gold in the Potter Black vaults. Those would be for his children. The muggle money he could live on, and the gold he kept out of the bank. Not many people saw much of Harry Potter in the Wizarding World. They saw his wives, of course, but where Harry was not many people knew.

Harry, for the most part lived his life outside of the Wizarding World of Britain. While he loved magic, he would never trust British Wizards again. From his home in France, near to where his Potter wife's parents lived, he opened his own business in warding. No one knew it was Harry Potter doing the warding until they were placed, and an unbreakable vow/contract was used in each case. Fleur handled that part of the business, while Luna, his Black family wife, cared for all their children. Not one of them would attend Hogwarts.


End file.
